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From Ovechkin to Jagr, 10 NHL milestones to watch for this season

It’s always nice to see rookies like Jack Eichel and Connor McDavid score their first career goals, but they’re still a long ways from reaching the milestones some veteran players are after in 2015-16. Here are the top 10 milestones that could be hit this season.

Highly touted rookies such as Jack Eichel, Connor McDavid, Max Domi and Nikolaj Ehlers have already notched their first NHL goals, earning their first major milestone. But while rookies build their careers from the ground up, a number of wily veterans are chasing some big-time career marks.

Already this season, Steven Stamkos and Tomas Plekanec have reached the coveted 500-point mark for their careers. Both reached the milestone with goals within the last week, but there are a few players who can reach even greater heights this season — we’re talking Hall of Fame-calibre milestones.

Take Jaromir Jagr, for instance. The 43-year-old ageless wonder is already a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame, but he has six points in his first four games with the Florida Panthers this season and continues to inch ever-closer to the top of the all-time scoring list. Jagr’s teammate, goaltender Roberto Luongo, is also moving up the ladder when it comes to all-time marks for netminders and should be able to reach a couple in 2015-16.

Here are the top 10 milestones to watch this season:

10. Olli Jokinen’s strange journey

We'll start with an odd one and a milestone that may not come to pass. Jokinen doesn’t yet have an NHL contract, but there is an outside shot Jokinen becomes only the second player in NHL history to have the distinction of suiting up for 11 teams.

The 36-year-old had off-season shoulder surgery and is coming off of a season in which he scored just four goals and 10 points in 62 games. He might be able to wiggle his way back onto an NHL roster, though, if he is willing to sign a low-dollar, show-me deal and play fourth line minutes.

The milestone is a funny one considering it seemed at times that Jokinen was destined to stay with the Florida Panthers forever. But Jokinen’s career has taken him all over the NHL. Drafted by the Kings, he was the dealt to the New York Islanders and then the Panthers. After seven years with the Cats, Jokinen has since played for the Coyotes, Flames, Rangers, Jets, Predators, Maple Leafs and Blues. That’s one third of the NHL. Should he sign in any city he has never played in before, only Mike Sillinger, who played for 12 teams, will have worn more NHL jerseys.

9. Daniel Sedin follows Henrik’s milestone

A similar list put together at the start of 2014-15 would have listed both Sedin twins as possibilities to reach the 900-point plateau with Daniel having an outside shot. Well, Henrik did accomplish the feat last season, so now it’s up to Daniel to follow suit.

Entering the year, Daniel was 19 points away from hitting the 900-point mark for his career. He’s gotten off to a hot start and it shouldn’t be long before Daniel gets to the mark. Through four games, Sedin has one goal and three points and he’s coming off of a season in which he scored 76 points. Chances are Daniel is celebrating his 900th point before the Canucks hit the end of their November schedule.

8. Shane Doan has two marks in sight

Few players have the longevity that Doan has had and the 20-year veteran is about to reach two big milestones in his career. Realistically, both could come on the same night, too.

The 39-year-old Doan has played 1,198 games and registered 368 goals and 899 points over that span. So when the Coyotes take on the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, Oct. 20, Doan will have a shot at knocking off two milestones at once. However, that’s if the 900-point plateau hasn’t already been reached.

Saturday night the Coyotes square off against the Boston Bruins and with a goal or an assist, Doan will be one of less than 105 players in the history of the NHL to hit the 900-point plateau.

7. Patrick Marleau’s winning tallies

When the San Jose Sharks beat the Anaheim Ducks on Oct. 10, Patrick Marleau was credited with the game-winning goal. Though the stat is admittedly a bit arbitrary — a game-winning goal can come in the first 10 seconds of a game should the goal-scoring team also record a shutout — Marleau has had a knack for finding his name next to the game-winner category throughout his career.

The Oct. 10 winner was the 88th of Marleau’s career. The all-time record is held by Jagr with 129 and there’s not likely to be anyone who catches him, but Marleau could very well enter the top 10 this season. If he notches five more game-winning tallies in 2015-16, Marleau will have 93 in his career, putting him into a three-way tie with Joe Nieuwendyk and Sergei Fedorov for the 10th-most in NHL history.

6. Marian Hossa and the half-millennium mark

Early in 2014-15, Hossa became one of less than 85 players to crack the 1,000-point mark for a career, but he’s well on his way to reaching another major milestone if he can start finding the back of the net this season.

Through five games, Hossa has been held goalless, but the 36-year-old perennial 20-goal scorer is only 14 tallies away from 500 for his career, a feat which only 42 players in NHL history have ever achieved.

That’s not the only mark Hossa is chasing down, though. He has been one of the most defensively sound players of this generation and an incredible penalty killer throughout his career which has led him to knock home 30 short handed goals in his career. Though it’ll be a tough hill to climb, should Hossa find the back of the net five times while the Blackhawks are down a man, he will crack the top 10 all-time and move into a tie for 9th with Theoren Fleury and Dirk Graham with 35 career short handed markers.

5. Nine more goals for Jarome Iginla

Iginla is at times the forgotten star on a team that consists of Nathan MacKinnon, Matt Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog, but the 38-year-old is coming off of a 29-goal, 59-point season with the Colorado Avalanche. In three games this season, ‘Iggy’ already has two goals, which have put him up to 591 for his career.

Should Iginla find the back of the net nine more times this season, he’ll even further solidify his Hall of Fame credentials as one of only 19 players to ever notch 600 goals. Realistically, Iginla could even come close to passing his GM in Colorado, Joe Sakic, who is sitting in 15th all-time with 625 goals. Next up after Sakic is Dave Andreychuk, who scored 640 goals in his career.

4. ‘King Henrik’ nearing 350-win crown

Henrik Lundqvist has been one of the most incredibly consistent netminders in the NHL. In every single campaign outside of the lockout-shortened season, Lundqvist has won at least 30 games and there’s no reason to believe the 2015-16 campaign will be any different.

As it stands, Lundqvist is only eight wins away from reaching 350 for his career, making him only the 19th goalie in league history to reach the 350-win plateau. But he could jump even further up the list by the end of the season.

If the Rangers win another 31 games with Lundqvist between the pipes this season, he’ll surpass Andy Moog on the all-time list and be in sole possession of the 15th-most wins in NHL history. Lundqvist could very well be in the 400-win club by the time the 2016-17 season closes.

3. Alex Ovechkin eyes up 500/900

How has Ovechkin’s 2015-16 season gone so far? In two games, he has two goals and three points, which is about as good a start as you could ask for from the ‘Great 8.’ But the Capitals superstar is eying up two major milestones that might make you feel ancient.

For those of you who have been fans of the league since Ovechkin broke in, prepare to feel old. With two more points he will have 900 in his career. It has taken him just 762 games to get to this point and, honestly, it wouldn’t be shocking were Ovechkin to notch points No. 899 and 900 in Saturday’s contest against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Ovechkin isn’t just staring down 900 points, though. The six-time 50-goal scorer is just 23 tallies away from hitting 500 for his career. Easily the most prolific goal scorer of this generation, Ovechkin has five Rocket Richards trophies as the league’s top goal scorer, including each of the past three. Ovechkin reaching 500 goals this season isn’t a matter of if, it’s a matter of when. And seeing as 23 goals is equivalent to about half a season for Ovechkin, expect him to be celebrating goal No. 500 sometime in late-December or early-January.

2. Three marks for Roberto Luongo in 2015-16

Keep an eye on Luongo this season as he could very well reach three milestones this year.

The first major mark will be wins. After racking up two in his first three starts of the season, Luongo is now moving his way up through the top 10 all-time. With one more victory, he will be in sole possession of ninth all-time and needs just five more victories to surpass the legendary Glenn Hall for eighth in league history. However, on an improving Panthers club, the mark to watch will be Tony Esposito’s 423-win total. Luongo needs just 21 more wins — a 23-win season — to surpass Esposito for seventh all-time. Since 2003-04, Luongo has never failed to eclipse the 25-win plateau in a season he was healthy.

Luongo is also eying up an incredible mark for shutouts, as he is only two away from 70 career blank slates. A big part of that mark, too, is that Luongo has made the fourth-most saves of any goaltender. But that could change soon, as he sits only 694 stops away from passing Curtis Joseph as the goaltender who has turned away the third-most shots in league history. He should earn that mark by season’s end.

There’s one more less illustrious milestone Luongo is nearing, but it’s likely not one he wants. He is 15 losses away from having the fifth-most defeats of any goaltender in league history. On a bubble team like Florida, that’s a real possibility for this season. In fact, don’t be surprised if Luongo ends his career with more losses than any goaltender in league history — only 66 more and he’s there, and he still has seven seasons left on his deal.

1. Jagr’s legend growing with each passing game

It’s been a while since any player has had their waiting period waived in order to enter the Hall of Fame, but Jagr might be worthy of such an honor, especially if he keeps playing like a 30-year-old in a 43-year-old’s body.

This season, Jagr will enter the top 10 in games played and will likely eclipse the 1,600-game mark. That will be the least of his accomplishments, though.

Jagr currently sits in fifth all-time with 726 career goals. However, with six more tallies, he’ll pass Marcel Dionne on the all-time list and there’s no doubt he has a shot at passing Brett Hull’s third-best mark of 741 goals, too. As long as the wear and tear isn’t too much on Jagr and he doesn’t sustain a serious injury, 16 more goals seems right in his wheelhouse.

There’s more, though: if Jagr scores another 43 points this season — he scored 47 points in 2014-15 — he’ll be the third-highest scorer in NHL history, one point ahead of the legendary Gordie Howe. It’s worth noting, too, that Jagr would then be just 37 points shy of passing Mark Messier as the NHL’s second all-time leading scorer. Jagr is an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, but here’s hoping he’s back for at least one or two more years to make a serious push at second on the all-time scoring list.

Down Goes Brown: The NHL’s five most confusing players

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Down Goes Brown: The NHL’s five most confusing players

From big off-season acquisitions struggling to oft-maligned players proving their worth, the NHL has its fair share of players who are hard to figure out.

I'm still confused.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the NHL's five most confusing teams, at least from my perspective. These were the teams that I just couldn't figure out. Were they good? Bad? Somewhere in the middle? I'd spent the season trying to work it out, and come up empty.

As it turned out, I wasn't alone. More than a few readers confessed to being confused by those teams too, not to mention several others. It was like having a support group. A support group of confused hockey fans, all watching the games unfold with their heads tilted like a puppy seeing a toilet flush for the first time.

Well, today I'm going to call another meeting of the confused hockey fan network. But this time, we're not looking at teams. No, today we're going to dive into some specific players that have me perplexed. In most of these cases, I thought I had a handle on things. But now I'm not so sure.

Maybe you can help me out. Or maybe you're just as confused as I am. Either way, I think it will be good for my soul to admit that I just can't figure these guys out.

Brian Elliott

What I thought I knew: After an up-and-down start to this NHL career, Elliott had settled in to a predictable pattern with the Blues. He'd play well. He'd post strong numbers, sometimes even league-leading ones. And then, just when push came to shove, the Blues would lose faith in him and hand the starter's job to someone else. Maybe it was the backup. Maybe it was a pricey trade acquisition. Maybe it was even a semi-retired legend, in a move we'd all agree to just pretend never happened. But time and time again, the Blues had no faith in Elliott.

And I was convinced that they were wrong. This was the classic case of a team over-thinking things, or maybe letting dressing room politics or a faith in intangibles override basic logic. The numbers didn't lie: Elliott was one of the best goalies in the league. And when the Flames nabbed him at a discount in the offseason, I was sure that they'd found their starter.

Where I'm at now: Sitting around wondering what happened. Which is also where Elliott finds himself most games these days.

Chad Johnson has been a great story, and you can't blame the Flames for riding the hot hand. Elliott got off to a bad start, and when you're a young team that hasn't earned a ton of self-confidence quite yet, you can't let yourself fall too far out of the race. The Flames are being smart here.

But… Elliott is still good, right? Every goalie has the occasional slump, so we can't panic over 13 games. Then again, Elliott's never really done much outside of Ken Hitchcock's goalie factory, and the Blues still didn't believe in him. Did they know something that the rest of us, including the Flames, somehow missed?

Bobby Ryan

What I thought I knew: Remember when Ryan was left off of Team USA in 2014, partly because Brian Burke didn't think he could spell "intense"? What a ridiculous snub that was. Hey guys, 30-goal scorers in their prime don't exactly grow on trees.

Well, sure, I imagine Senator fans were already in the loop on this one. But it feels like the rest of us have been slow to realize that Ryan just hasn't been the same player in Ottawa that he was in Anaheim. His best year since the 2013 trade was only 23 goals, and that was back in 2013-14. This year, he has just three goals through 21 games.

In hindsight, maybe we should have seen that coming. Ryan was 26 when the trade went down, and in today's NHL, that's already past the peak of many forwards. But the Senators clearly thought they were getting an elite player with some big seasons left in him – remember, we're just two years removed from them handing him a $50-million contract.

Ryan's had to overcome some tough hurdles in his life, including the loss of his mother this summer. It still feels like he could rebound and reclaim his status as a first-line player. But if not, the budget-conscious Senators may be stuck with an ugly-looking contract that they can't really afford.

Tyler Bozak

What I thought I knew: Any Leaf fan who was paying attention was in on this one. Sure, Bozak had put up some decent stats over the years, but he'd done it as Phil Kessel's sidekick, inexplicably getting all the playing time with Toronto's best player and reaping the rewards. And even then, his numbers had been just OK, never topping 50 points in a season and struggling in his own end.

It was a classic case of a superstar propping up an also-ran. And once Kessel was shipped out of town, we'd see the real Tyler Bozak.

Where I'm at now: Hey, it turns out the real Tyler Bozak is pretty good.

Not "first line center" good. Certainly not "team MVP" good, despite some of the sillier hype from the Kessel era. But his production hasn't cratered without his superstar wingman. In fact, it's improved slightly, and he's on pace for the most productive season of his career this year.

Maybe he's benefitting from the Leafs finally having some depth at center. Maybe he's embracing his role as the "dad figure" on one of the league's youngest rosters. Or maybe he was just better than I thought he was all along.

John Klingberg

What I thought I knew: He's easily one of the best young offensive defensemen in the league.

Where I'm at now: Pretty much the same place. Which is why what's going on in Dallas right now is so hard to figure out.

Last month, Lindy Ruff made Klingberg a healthy scratch, and everyone went "What?" Then we found out that Klingberg had missed a team meeting, so fair enough — the rules apply to everyone. But then last week he was scratched again, this time for performance reasons.

And sure enough, he hasn't been great this year. He's on pace for the worst offensive totals of his career, and he's getting creamed on possession, where he'd previously been very solid. Sure, maybe nobody would look good in front of that Dallas goaltending. And Ruff is carrying eight defenseman, which makes his decisions tougher. But Klingberg really has looked off this year, and with a 98.5 PDO, this isn't all about bad luck and shaky percentages. Something's wrong.

We're talking about a guy who finished sixth in the Norris voting last year, in just his second NHL season. It looked like the Stars had themselves a poor man's Erik Karlsson in the making. Maybe they still do. But this season has turned a sure thing into a major question mark.

Kris Russell

What I thought I knew: No clue. None. He seems like a good guy. Smallish, and without any especially flashy numbers, but he always seemed like a nice underdog story who'd overachieved over the years on a long path towards earning some respect. I usually like those kind of stories.

But over the last few years, Russell has somehow morphed into the poster child for the debate between analytics and old school. And you're not allowed to stake out a middle ground. You have to either think he's the second coming of Scott Stevens, willing his team to victory by sheer force of heart, or you have to think he's hot garbage. Those are your only two options. And you better choose quickly, because as soon as his name get mentioned, everybody is going to start yelling.

Where I'm at now: SO MUCH YELLING!

Honestly, I have no idea. When Russell hit free agency this summer, I thought the big numbers being thrown around were a little ridiculous. So did the league, apparently, since he had to settle for a one-year deal with the Oilers. That seemed like a good fit, and you figured Russell could settle in, put together a decent season, and take another shot at a big UFA payday next year.

No such luck. No, apparently we all have to keep fighting the Great Kris Russell Battle until the end of time. Is he good? Bad? What position does he even play? Nobody remembers.

We have always been at war with Kris Russell. Now pick a side and go yell at somebody about it.

Sean McIndoe has been writing about the NHL since 2008, most recently for ESPN and Grantland. He spends most of his time making jokes on twitter, where you may know him as @downgoesbrown. He appears weekly on TheHockeyNews.com.

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Power Rankings: Red-hot Blue Jackets still fighting for respect

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Power Rankings: Red-hot Blue Jackets still fighting for respect

The Blue Jackets have been the most pleasant surprise in the NHL this season, but it's still going to take convincing for the hockey world to believe they're for real.

We’ll totally understand if you’re having just a little trouble getting on board with the 2016-17 version of the Columbus Blue Jackets. After all, you’ve probably been burned before.

Their fan base certainly seems to be wary. Despite the fact the Blue Jackets are the surprise of the NHL and have emerged as one of the most dynamic and exciting teams in the league, they drawn fewer than 12,000 in three of their past four home games. Even their coach thinks the team has work to do to earn their fans’ trust. “I want our team to have a chip on their shoulder,” Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella told Michael Arace of the Columbus Dispatch recently. “I think they should. We’re trying to get respect in the league. Quite honestly, we should be disrespected because of where we’ve been.”

That won’t last long if the Blue Jackets keep this up. The league’s best power play continues to fuel one of the league’s hottest teams and has landed them at the top of thn.com’s weekly Power Rankings for the second time this season. Last week’s rankings in parentheses:

CREAM OF THE CROP

1. Columbus Blue Jackets (8)

2. Philadelphia Flyers (15)

3. Pittsburgh Penguins (6)

4. St. Louis Blues (2)

5. Chicago Blackhawks (5)

6. Montreal Canadiens (7)

7. New York Rangers (4)

8. San Jose Sharks (11)

9. Boston Bruins (20)

10. Calgary Flames (27)

Is there a bigger bargain or a shrewder off-season signing than Sam Gagner?...Steve Mason went from one of the worst goalies in the NHL early in the season to one of the best of late. His save percentage in his first 16 games was .892, but has improved to .947 in his past five… If Marc-Andre Fleury wants to get traded, he’s not doing himself any favor with his play lately…The Blues completed a 4-0-1 home stand with the game going into overtime…With Jonathan Toews and Corey Crawford already out, the Blackhawks lost defenseman Brent Seabrook in their 4-0 win over Arizona Tuesday night…How will the Canadiens and the surprising Alexander Radulov respond to the injury to Alex Galchenyuk?...The injury-ravaged Rangers saw Rick Nash go down with a groin injury and Matt Puempel to a concussion in their 4-2 loss to the Islanders Tuesday night…Joe Thornton passed Brendan Shanahan for 25th all-time on the NHL’s scoring list with an assist in a 2-1 win over Montreal last week…Anyone who predicted David Pastrnak would be in Rocket Richard Trophy contention a third of the way into the season is looking very bright at the moment…The Flames were already one of the hottest teams in the NHL without Johnny Gaudreau, then won their first two with him back in the lineup.

THE MUSHY MIDDLE

11. Washington Capitals (11)

12. Edmonton Oilers (14)

13. Ottawa Senators (12)

14. Los Angeles Kings (1)

15. New Jersey Devils (23)

16. Detroit Red Wings (16)

17. Nashville Predators (3)

18. Minnesota Wild (19)

19. Anaheim Ducks (10)

20. Winnipeg Jets (17)

Capitals coach Barry Trotz had some pointed words to Alex Ovechkin about his penchant for taking minor penalties of late. No cracks in the foundation, though. Just a frank discussion…The Oilers game Tuesday night against Buffalo was touted as Connor McDavid vs. Jack Eichel, the kind of narrative the Oilers have learned to accept. “Every night it’s Connor vs. Somebody,” said Oilers coach Todd McLellan…Goalie Craig Anderson started in the Senators’ 8-5 loss to Pittsburgh Monday night, but did not travel with the team for a three-game California trip to be with his wife as she undergoes treatment for throat cancer…The usually stingy Kings have given up 11 goals in their past three games. “That’s too many goals,” said Kings coach Darryl Sutter…Devils winger Taylor Hall on the aftermath of his clean, but devastating, hit on Philip Larsen Tuesday night: “I feel terrible.” Not to be trite, but Hall should not be feeling terrible about the way he has played since returning from a knee injury. He has five points in his past two games…Goalie Jimmy Howard will be back in uniform for the Red Wings when they host Columbus Friday night, but will have a difficult time pushing Petr Mrazek out of the crease…After missing four games with an upper-body injury, James Neal scored a goal in a 4-3 Predators’ win over Colorado Tuesday night…Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk, whose career was revived when he came to Minnesota, will make his 300th career start tonight in Toronto…Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle could not pull Jonathan Bernier during his team’s 8-3 loss to Calgary because backup John Gibson was battling a stomach virus…Over the past 30 years, only Teemu Selanne and Alex Ovechkin have scored goals at a better pace than Patrik Laine of the Jets is scoring them now.

VYING FOR THE PARTICIPATION BADGE

21. New York Islanders (26)

22. Tampa Bay Lightning (22)

23. Carolina Hurricanes (25)

24. Buffalo Sabres (29)

25. Florida Panthers (24)

26. Vancouver Canucks (18)

27. Toronto Maple Leafs (13)

28. Dallas Stars (28)

29. Arizona Coyotes (21)

30. Colorado Avalanche (30)

With points in each of their past five games, four of them wins, the Islanders are easily on their most successful string of the season…The Lightning could get Ryan Callahan, Jason Garrison and Jonathan Drouin back for their home game against Vancouver Thursday night…Jordan Staal, sidelined for the past four games with a concussion, likely won’t be available to the Hurricanes for a three-game road trip through California that begins tonight…After playing almost 500 games in the minors, defenseman Erik Burgdoerfer made his NHL debut in the Sabres’ 3-2 overtime win over Washington Tuesday night… Panthers have gone to overtime in four of their five games GM Tom Rowe has been behind the bench. They’ve won one in overtime, lost two in OT and one in a shootout…Philip Larsen, who was taken off the ice on a stretcher after a hit from Taylor Hall Tuesday night, was released from hospital in New Jersey Wednesday morning and was cleared to return to Vancouver while the Canucks continue on a five-game road trip…After waiving Jhonas Enroth, the Maple Leafs search for a backup goalie continues. They signed Karri Ramo to a professional tryout contract and assigned him to their farm team. That should cure everything…The Coyotes have been outscored 14-6 and have averaged 41 shots against per game in an 0-3-1 month of December…All nine of Matt Duchene’s goals this season have come on the road. The Avs could use that kind of production at the Pepsi Center, where they’re 4-8-1 this season and recently went 0-4-1 on a five-game homestand.

Fantasy hockey mailbag: what happened to the run-and-gun Capitals?

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Fantasy hockey mailbag: what happened to the run-and-gun Capitals?

We're far enough into the season that certain players' slow starts have become more than that. Is it time to cut bait on formerly reliable studs like Kuznetsov?

It's almost time to toss "don't panic" talk out the window in fantasy hockey leagues. Slow starts are insurmountable at this juncture in most pools, but GMs should start identifying and assessing their problem areas. Some struggling stars can still shake off their slumps, but others are showing legitimate red flags right now. The sample sizes are big enough to warrant worrying in certain cases.

That seems to be the theme of almost every question I received for this month's mailbag. Plenty of you find yourselves at crossroads with some typically valuable fantasy commodities. Let's see if I can help you make some tough decisions.

Austin Gagne (@gagne31): Who are the top 10 prospects outside the NHL?

Fun question, Austin, and I'll use it as a chance to plug our recent special THN magazine, Prospects Unlimited. In that edition, we ranked the top 100 players aged 21 and younger at any level. That included current NHLers, players drafted to the NHL but not yet playing there, and even youngsters years away from their draft years. As for a top 10 prospects outside the NHL, I'll pull the best 10 from Prospects Unlimited. I'll include their overall rank too (as they're mixed in with 21-and-under NHLers like Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews, too):

Dylan Strome, C (9th)

Joe Veleno, C (17th)

Nolan Patrick, C (21st)

Timothy Liljegren, D (22nd)

Ilya Samsonov, G (24th)

Kyle Connor, LW (26th)

Pierre-Luc Dubois, D (27th)

Olli Juolevi, D (28th)

Oliver Wahlstrom, C (30th)

Clayton Keller, C (31st)

Note the inclusion of Connor. He just got sent to the AHL, so he's not an NHLer right now.

Ryan Kleinau (@rkleinau): Will Semyon Varlamov ever turn it around, or is keeping him as one of my two starting goalies a mistake?

Varlamov is undoubtedly better than his season numbers suggest. He's actually improved a bit of late, posting a .926 save percentage over his past eight appearances. Still, it's understandable to be concerned about him. He has a bad team playing in front of him. He regularly faces 30 to 40 shots in a game. He has a good backup behind him in Calvin Pickard. If your league is relatively deep and relies on volume goalie stats such as saves, however, I wouldn't cut bait on Varlamov yet. Your best-case scenario might be a real-life trade that puts him on a better team. It could happen.

If you can move Fleury for another goaltender with a clearer path to regular starts, go for it. We know the Penguins can't finish the year with Fleury and Murray, as it would mean losing Murray in the expansion draft (Fleury has to be protected because of his no-movement clause). So rather than sit on a platoon and wait for a Fleury trade, why not use him to secure yourself goalies from three different teams, increasing your ceiling of starts? That said, I wouldn't rush to move Fleury for a skater, especially if teams in your league carry many goalies and rotate them, as you won't get enough starts from just Murray alone. If you can buy low on a Freddie Andersen type for Fleury, though, do it.

This is a slam-dunk. Any team acquiring Laine in a keeper pool is in good shape. And you get Larkin coming your way on top of that? This one's a no brainer. Laine is a top-10 forward commodity already in keeper formats.

Harold P (@howie379): Do you like Patrick Maroon from Edmonton?

He's a handy and underrated player in fantasy. I have him on my team in my most important league. He's played 45 games as an Oiler over the past two seasons, amassing 16 goals, 27 points, 62 penalty minutes and 100 hits. Pro-rated to an 82-game season: 29 goals, 49 points, 113 PIM, 182 hits. That's a valuable stat line in any league. He's a nice depth option who gets chances to play with Connor McDavid from time to time.

I'll single out three top-flight producers from last year: Johnny Gaudreau, Anze Kopitar and Aleksander Barkov.

The three-week injury layoff seemed to do 'Johnny Hockey' wonders, as he's returned to the lineup possessed, with three straight two-point games. He's making up for lost time. It wouldn't be remotely surprising to see him score at a top-five rate the rest of the year.

As for Kopitar, he's done this before. He had 13 points in 23 games through the end of November last season, then had 61 points in 58 games from December onward. He'll be just fine.

Barkov, though, is probably my favorite buy-low in the whole league right now. He's scoring on just 7.7 percent of his shots and is a 12.8 percent career shooter, so he's in store for positive regression. He's an outstanding possession player who generates lots of shot attempts. He's already starting to come out of his slump, with 10 points in his past 11 games. The overall season line of 5-13-18 in 28 games doesn't look too special, though, so it's worth trying to steal him in a trade from an oblivious owner.

Bad sign: I chose Kuznetsov for the main photo in the previous mailbag, too. It's been a problem all season. Owners understandably drafted him expecting a top-10 scorer after he was one last year. So what on Earth is wrong with the kid? We can't blame it on deployment. Kuznetsov's most common linemate this season has been Alex Ovechkin, and Kuznetsov's ice time has been virtually identical to last year's. On one hand, Kuznetsov has some of the game's best pure hands, and he's bound to get hot at some point, so he's a decent buy-low target. On the other hand, if you're buying low, aim to get him for 75 cents on the dollar. Don't give up too much, as he's shown some red flags. Kuznetsov shot the puck 2.35 times per game last year and has tumbled to 1.60 this year. He seems to be more hesitant. Concern is officially warranted.

As for Burakovsky, he's just not quite established yet as a consistently dangerous NHL scorer. He's prone to streaks and slumps, and he doesn't always play on Barry Trotz's top two lines. I wouldn't blame anyone for dropping him, but the funny thing is…if you do, I'd advise other GMs to scoop him up. His shooting percentage is way below his norm, and his upside makes him worth a one-week flier for any team.

Chris Pumo (cpumo21): What's up with Filip Forsberg???

Forsberg's struggles are a fluke in my eyes. He still gets lots of ice time. His shooting percentage is ridiculously low. He'll go on a tear soon enough. Don't worry about him.

Terry Cain (@tcain47): Due for a comeback or not: Patrice Bergeron? Tyler Johnson?

Bergeron for sure. He remains an absolutely elite defensive forward, the sport's best, and will always get oodles of ice time as a result. Bergeron is also shooting the puck at close to his normal rate. The pucks will start going in. He's due for a huge surge. Johnson, on the other hand, confounds me a bit. It's starting to look like his 72-point breakout of 2014-15 was an anomaly.

Jasoc Pullen (@JacobPullen): Will Jamie Benn get back to normal?

I think he will. He's still producing at close to a point per game. It's possible Benn just needed time to get physically comfortable after recovering from core muscle surgery, which forced him out of the World Cup. I predict a big second half.

News

Philip Larsen got knocked unconscious, the Canucks retailiated without knowing what happened, and they could have hurt their teammate even worse in the process.

The incident was horrific. We can all agree on that.

Tuesday night in New Jersey, Vancouver Canucks blueliner Philip Larsen skated behind his net to retrieve a puck. He had no idea Devils left winger Taylor Hall was pursuing the same puck. They collided heavily. Larsen bashed his head on the ice and was knocked out cold.

It was a scary scene, undoubtedly, one that understandably evoked a ton of emotion from Larsen's teammates. It was hardly a surprise to see a flurry of Vancouver players swarm Hall and make him fight.

It was a shame, however, for multiple reasons. First off, the hit wasn't dirty. It wasn't even a deliberate bodycheck. Hall leaned back on his skates to slow his momentum and held out his arms as if protecting himself from imminent impact. It was more of a crash than a bonecrushing hit. We can debate whether Larsen's head was the principal point of contact – I don't believe it was at all – but it's irrelevant when assessing Hall's guilt. There was no intent there. He won't be disciplined by the NHL for an accident.

And yet, thanks to the sport's culture of immediate and forceful vengeance, Hall had to fight anyway. In the spur of the moment, in the heat of elite competition, players are simply too jacked up to take a breath and assess the situation. They see a comrade fall and, in mere milliseconds, seek and destroy whoever caused the harm.

“You always have a problem with a hit when one of your guys gets hit hard," Canucks coach Willie Desjardins told the Vancouver Province's Jason Botchford after the the game. "It doesn’t matter if it’s a clean hit. You have a problem when a guy gets hit that hard. I think all coaches would.”

The ironic thing about this tough-guy mentality is that it could end up pushing one of the toughest things about hockey out of the game: good, clean hits. If the swarm mentality goes on much longer, the only guys willing to lay opponents out with big hits will be those ready and willing to drop the gloves right afterward. Sooner or later players might decide it's not worth sitting five minutes and/or risking injury just to put a lick on a guy. And, in Hall's case, he wasn't even trying to drill Larsen.

Will we ever stop seeing players attacked after clean hits? I doubt it. The revenge assault is a crime of passion, a snap decision. But maybe, just maybe, the Canucks and players all over the world can learn a bit from what happened right after Larsen got hit. Watch:

The first instinct, sadly, is not to help Larsen, but to destroy Hall. Center Michael Chaput immediately starts a fight. That causes a pileup of players from both teams – all around the unconscious Larsen. It's downright disturbing to see him getting kicked in the head by his own teammates’ skates. Canucks goalie Jacob Markstrom tries to box out Larsen and keep him safe. Markus Granlund tries as well but has to step over and onto Larsen in the process. It’s a miracle Larsen wasn’t cut. None of that would've happened had Chaput thought of Larsen first.

The ugly scene is a reminder that, right after a teammate takes a massive hit, the first priority should be to protect him. The best way to do that isn't to attack his attacker. It's to attend to the teammate first. There's plenty of time to review what happened and take down the perpetrator's number for later in the game. That's what jumbo-tron replays are for. And, in cases like Hall's, the violence would be averted altogether if players watched the replay and realized it was an accident.

Sadly, the idea is a pipe dream, and I don’t expect players to learn from Larsen's fate anytime soon. But we can always hope.